Avior Wealth Management LLC Trims Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Avior Wealth Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 58.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,851 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,795 shares during the quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $511,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,808,000 after acquiring an additional 8,710 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company’s stock worth $910,000 after purchasing an additional 3,941 shares during the last quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 334.4% during the second quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC now owns 36,596 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,897,000 after purchasing an additional 28,172 shares during the last quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management Services Ltd lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.6% during the second quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management Services Ltd now owns 1,483 shares of the company’s stock valued at $117,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares during the period. Finally, Private Management Group Inc. lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 75.4% during the second quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 23,343 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,848,000 after purchasing an additional 10,033 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.0%

MRK opened at $114.17 on Monday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $125.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.54. The company has a fifty day moving average of $115.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $100.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $282.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.68, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.27.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.03. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 44.57%. The business had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.72 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.70%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on MRK shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. BMO Capital Markets raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $82.00 to $130.00 in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Citigroup upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group raised their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $127.13.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, CFO Caroline Litchfield sold 41,997 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.61, for a total value of $5,023,261.17. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 90,192 shares in the company, valued at $10,787,865.12. The trade was a 31.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.92, for a total value of $4,556,870.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 160,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,368,240.08. The trade was a 19.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735 in the last ninety days. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a global biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies and animal health products. Its portfolio spans multiple therapeutic areas with a particular emphasis on oncology, vaccines and infectious disease, as well as therapies for metabolic and chronic conditions. Among its well-known products are the cancer immunotherapy Keytruda (pembrolizumab) and the human papillomavirus vaccine Gardasil; the company also markets a range of medicines and vaccines for veterinary use through Merck Animal Health.

Founded in the late 19th century as the U.S.